Tucson Unified hears long public defense of culturally responsive instruction as budget cuts loom

Dozens of teachers, parents and students pressed the Tucson Unified School District governing board on April 15 to keep full funding for the district’s Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and Instruction department, which provides mentor teachers, professional development and curriculum supports across grade levels.

Speakers described classroom examples and student outcomes they attribute to CRPI programming and urged the board to protect current staff and mentor-teacher positions amid proposed desegregation budget cuts.

The appeals came during the board’s call to the audience, when 15 people addressed the board in person and 13 submitted comments to be read aloud. Several speakers framed CRPI as central to teachers’ professional growth and to student engagement, particularly for historically underserved students.

“My ask to you this evening is that you preserve the current FTE for CRMTs to ensure our CR community receives consistent support in their classrooms,” said Taylor Pacheco, a CR teacher who said she teaches CR Algebra 1 and geometry and named her classroom work and student projects. Pacheco described students presenting research at the University of Arizona and using culturally relevant problems in math instruction.

Other speakers recounted classroom and schoolwide changes under CRPI coaching. Teacher Margaret Cheney told the board the department “is a leading force and beacon of strength and support” for the district and asked that CRPI be expanded, not cut. CRPI director Lorenzo Lopez later told the board that his team serves roughly 7,000 students and supports 160 secondary CRC teachers and 22 elementary teachers.

Community members placed CRPI in a longer local history of curriculum and student advocacy. Jose Gonzalez, a CRPI mentor teacher, invoked the district’s past court-ordered remedies and urged the board not to “cut our department’s budget,” saying those programs were built to address historical inequalities and improve outcomes.

Several teachers who submitted written comments were read into the record and described mentoring, lesson modeling and improved student engagement. Veronica Noyes, a sixth-grade ELA teacher, said a CRPI mentor “gave me positive feedback and specific suggestions” and that the mentor program allowed her to more effectively reach a diverse students.

Some public commenters tied CRPI funding to larger legal and federal pressures. Amber Paris, a teacher who asked that the board discuss Title VI compliance on the record, urged transparency around any decision involving federal civil-rights obligations, saying the board should “discuss it openly” if it chooses to sign federal documents related to Title VI.

Board members responded from the dais. Board member Shaw thanked the speakers and said she would place a future agenda item to explore a self-contained dual-language GATE middle-school program; President Luna Rose and other board members acknowledged receiving the testimony and said they would continue studying budget options.

The public advocacy did not produce a board vote on CRPI funding during the meeting; later in the evening the board approved a consent-item certification tied to Title VI compliance by roll call (see "Votes at a glance"). Several board members said they would continue the discussion and asked staff for more detailed budget and program materials before making decisions.

The series of public remarks underscored that proposed desegregation-related cuts are drawing intense attention from teachers and families in Tucson Unified — and that many classroom practitioners view CRPI as integral to instruction, mentoring and student identity.

For now, CRPI staff and supporters await follow-up budget presentations and formal board decisions scheduled in coming weeks, and several board members signaled intent to keep the department’s work under active review.